The invention relates to an application device and a method for the lubrication of a chain drive, more preferably for motorcycle drives or the like, wherein the application device comprises a rail device, wherein the rail device with its longitudinal side can be brought to bear against a chain of the chain drive and comprises a contact region contactable with the chain, wherein at least the contact region is formed of a consumable solid lubricant that can be applied to the chain.
As is known, chain drives require regular lubrication with a lubricant, wherein a viscous lubricant or a solid lubricant can be used. Viscous lubricants particularly have the disadvantage that contaminations such as for example dust, sand etc. can easily adhere to the chain drive because of a lubricating film formed by the lubricant. These contaminations have an abrasive effect on sliding surface pairings of the chain drive and thus promote early wear of the latter. Particularly chain drives exposed to rough ambient conditions such as for example motorcycle chain drives, bicycle chain drives or the like are therefore subject to comparatively short service or maintenance intervals.
Furthermore, application devices comprising solid lubricants are known from the prior art which can be brought to bear against parts of a chain drive. Accordingly, application of a solid lubricant to the chain drive occurs without formation of a lubricating film, as a result of which absorption of dirt from an environment can be prevented. To this end, the solid lubricant is applied to parts of the chain drive by means of a brush. Disadvantageous here is that a regularly high relative speed of a chain or of sprocket wheels in mesh with the chain prevents reliable application of the lubricant. Even an application device acting under preload on a part of a chain drive negatively influences running characteristics of the chain drive through vibrations or through friction caused or induced thus. In addition to this, a lubricant depot is used up comparatively rapidly through contact pressure on the chain drive generated in this connection. In addition, the known application devices are designed so that due to their shape they could hardly be positioned within a chain drive in a suitable manner. Particularly in the case of motorcycle chain drives there is little space available for positioning an application device since the chain drive is regularly guided about an axle of a swingarm of a rear wheel in such a manner that the swingarm is located within the closed chain of the chain drive. Apart from this, the swingarm allows movement of an output sprocket wheel about the axle of the swingarm, as a result of which a position of the chain can be continually varied relative to a locationally fixed frame or to a drive sprocket wheel. Thus it is hardly possible to mount an application device in a locationally fixed manner without chain operation, which is subjected to continuous load changes anyway, being negatively influenced by the application device.